Natural Law and Light in the Reformed Confessions

In the modern period, particularly in the twentieth century, many Reformed folk became uneasy with the traditional Reformed language concerning natural law. As one who began to enter the Reformed world circa 1980, I mostly found Reformed people to be hostile to . . . Continue reading →

On Theocracy

theocracy

I have explained at great length here why those who deny our covenant theology, our hermeneutics, and our doctrine of the sacraments are not Reformed. All the Reformed confessions of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries teach paedobaptism and denounce the rejection of . . . Continue reading →

Dare To Be On The Daniel Plan?

the daniel plan

The song “Dare to Be a Daniel” is yet another reason to adopt Mr. Murray’s view that, in public worship, we should sing only God’s Word (I reached the same conclusion in Recovering the Reformed Confession).1 Not only is the song itself . . . Continue reading →

James K. A. Smith’s Bad Argument Is An Indicator Of Improving Health In The CRC

Regular readers of this space are aware that there is something of a confessional renaissance within the Christian Reformed Church in North America. For example, in 2023, Synod rejected decisively an appeal by a prominent progressive CRC congregation against Synod’s decision upholding . . . Continue reading →

Review: The Gospel in the Stars By Joseph A. Seiss

In 1882 the Lutheran minister Joseph A. Seiss (1823–1904) published the provocative volume, The Gospel in the Stars, Or, Prímeval Astronomy (Philadelphia: E. Claxton & company, 1882). Evidently, it found an audience, and it has been reprinted as recently as the early 1970s and . . . Continue reading →

“Bound To The Past” And To A Living Confession

In reaction to Rick Phillips’ critique of a response by a Federal Visionist to his (then) presbytery, one of the proponents of the Federal Vision made the following argument: Surely, we all know there’s a difference between how we use terms in . . . Continue reading →

The Black Rubric And The Creator-Creature Distinction

The “Black Rubric” was so-called because it was set in black print in the 1661–1662 edition of the Book of Common Prayer. It was first inserted into the Second Edwardian Prayer Book in 1552. It was intended to explain that when communicants . . . Continue reading →

The Fork In The Road For The “New Calvinists”

Thanks to Darryl Hart for pointing us to this challenging essay by Dale Coulter, who self identifies as a “Classical Pentecostal” in the holiness tradition.1 He writes on the official blog of the Regent University School of Divinity. He favors the Edwardsean . . . Continue reading →

The Mystery Of Children’s Church

I can understand why evangelicals and others who do not have a covenantal theology would exile their children during public worship, but I do not understand why so many ostensibly Reformed congregations have adopted the practice of dismissing their covenant children from . . . Continue reading →

Is Reformed Theology “Isolationist?”

One of the many criticisms John Frame makes of Recovering the Reformed Confession is that it advocates a closed, isolationist, elitist view of the Reformed faith in order to exclude others unnecessarily and wrongly.1 Jerry Owen, a commentator on Frame’s review, asks, . . . Continue reading →

Sempre abusando de semper reformanda

As igrejas reformadas têm alguns slogans maravilhosos que são repletos de verdades importantes. Às vezes, no entanto, esses slogans podem ser mal interpretados, mal comunicados e mal compreendidos. Com a possível exceção de Sola Scriptura (a Escritura somente), nenhum desses slogans foi mais frequentemente deturpado com maior prejuízo do que ecclesia . . . Continue reading →

Ping-Pong Evangelicals And Middle Knowledge

Paul Helm blogs monthly and substantively. A certain entry concerns the question of God’s so-called “middle knowledge” (media scientia). He writes, I’ve heard it said that many Calvinist writers currently favor some form of the doctrine of middle knowledge. I’ve also heard . . . Continue reading →

Fencing The Table Or The Scandal Of The Church

Perhaps nothing so scandalizes the contemporary (i.e., modern) church as the attempt by the visible church to obey the teaching of Jesus and the teaching of the Apostles concerning the Lord’s Table. I say this for three reasons: 1) recently I have . . . Continue reading →